Healthcare Job Training Boot Camp Graduation Attracts Major Employers

Jobs Waiting celebrated its first anniversary on Oct. 20 in Westchester County doing what it does best: bringing together qualified job seekers with employers. Nearly a dozen major healthcare employers were on hand to mark the occasion in White Plains, where 26 program participants networked with recruiters, and received certificates for completing their skills-building six-week Boot Camp. Since the program's launch in 2015, more than 200 long-term unemployed have participated in the program, of which nearly 60 percent of Boot Camp graduates are now working or accepted into further specialized training.

The employers included Cabrini Healthcare; Caremark; Child Care Council of Westchester; ENT and Allergy Associates; Montefiore Medical Center; MVP Healthcare; NewYork-Presbyterian; Premier Home Healthcare; VNA Hudson Valley; VNA of new York; and WESTMED Practice Partners. By the end of the Westchester Boot Camp, five of the 26 participants had already been hired; many more exchanged resumes and participated in brief interviews at the graduation event, which included a presentation of certificates and a mini-job fair.

The boot camps, part of a federally-funded initiative to train and support long-term unemployed individuals in the Hudson Valley, include job readiness training, personal career coaching, resume writing and interview skills, and much more.

Jobs Waiting is a federally funded workforce development grant that trains and supports long-term unemployed individuals in the Hudson Valley. The program is led by Westchester County and managed by the Westchester County Association, in partnership with the Westchester-Putnam Workforce Development board and the employment centers throughout seven Hudson Valley counties.